Railroad-cbossing signal



a. HEIL IG ENSTEIN, RAILROAD CROSSING SIGNAL. APPLICATION FILED IAN-5,1916.

Patented'Aug. 12, 1919.

ATTORNEY ,UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. i

GUS HnILIeEnsTEIN, or A TAMONT, ILLINOIS.

nniLnonncitossrne SIGNAL.

To all whom it may concern:

13s it known that 1, Gus HEILIGENSTEIN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Altamont, in the county of Eflingham and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in, Railroad- Crossing Signals, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to signaling devices and has particularreference to a device of this character which is adapted to be placedat' railroad crossings to warn pedestrians or vehicle drivers of the approach of a car or train. i

The principal object of the invention is to produce a track instrument which may be readily applied to the ties of a. track already laid, without removing the same or the'rails and withonly a little dislocation of the ballast.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device of this character which is simple and positive in its operation and which may be applied to any railway crossing at small cost and in a minimum of time.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts, as will behereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and claimed.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a perspective view of the railway crossing, showing the improved signal-' ing device operatively associated therewith.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view through a portion of the supporting plate and the housing.

Referring to the drawings by numerals wherein is illustrated the preferred embodiment of my invention, 11 designate the rails of a railroad which intersects with a highway or road 2.

Arranged between a pair of ties any suitable distance away from the road 2 is a plate 3 which is disposed alongside and adjacent the inner face of one of the rails 1 and is dropped at its center as shown, while its ends are secured to the ties as indicated at 4.

A housing 5 is mounted upon the dropped center of the plate 8 and has an opening 6 formed in the upper wall thereof through which passes a plunger 7. This plunger at its lower end passes through an opening in a web 8 across the housing which opening Patented Aug. 12, 1919.

Application filed January 5, 1916. Serial No. 70,487.

cent the inner edge of the head of the rail 1 so as to be successively depressed as the flanges of the car wheels pass thereover.

In order to produce as little interruption to the track as possible and also to involve as v little work as may be, the ballast is dug out and the dropped center of the plate passed down between two contiguous ties with its upbent ends lying upon them as seen in Fig. 1. It may be possible that the bottom of the rail will have to be channeled transversely, or if the center of the plate is dropped sufficiently, this maybe obviated; but a rock shaft 12 is passed transversely under said rail and through a bearing in one side wall of the housing 5 and has its inner end formed into a right angularly extending arm 13 which is slotted at its terminal end as at 14. A pin 15 in the plunger is engaged with the slot 14 so that as the flanges of the wheels successively engage with the head 11, the shaft 12 will be oscillated. The shaft 12 extends to one side of the rail 1 and is provided with an arm 16 which extends at substantially right angles thereto. The outer end of this arm 16 has a cable 17 secured thereto which passes over guide pulleys 18 arranged upon posts 19 situated at one side of the outer rail 1 and is then passed over a pulley 20 upon a signal post 21 which is arranged to one side of the highway road 2 and adjacent the tracks 1.

Mounted upon the post 21 near its upper end and adapted to swing in a path at right angles to the road 2 is a rod 22. This rod is pivotally mounted to the post at 23 and has the end of the cable 17 secured thereto so that as the head 11 is alternately depressed, the said rod will be swung upon its pivot point, a spring 24 having one end secured to the rod 22 and its opposite end secured to the post 21 to return the rod to an upright position upon release of the head 11 as each successive wheel of the car passes thereover. A suitable sign or flag 25 may be mounted upon the outer end of the rod 22 and may be lettered in any suitable manner to inform a pedestrian or vehicle driver passing along the road 2 of the nature of the danger to balance the rod upon its pivot point 23 l and permit easy operation of the same.

A gong 27 is secured to the post 21 above the pivot point 23 and this gong isadapted to be sounded upon each movement of the rod 22 by means of a sounder28 carried upon the rod 22 which is adapted to strike theigong' uponeach depression of the head 11 to swingthe rod 22 to a horizontal position.

The rod 22 is adapted to normally restin a substantially vertical ,position due to the action of the spring 24:. As the successive Wheels of a train passover the head 11 and depress the same, the arm 16 upon the rod 12 will be moved alternately back and forth and consequently the flag 25 will be waved and the gong 27 sounded intermittently until the entire train has passed over the head 11, the springs 9 and 24 serving to re turn the parts to normal position immediately following the passage of each wheel of t 1e cars over the head 11 as Willbe understood. V e

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, it isthought that the construction and operation of my improved signaling device will be readily understood and while I have herein shown and described one preferred guide opening in its top, a webaacross said housing havinga second guide opening, a plunger slidablymounted in said openings and rising above the housing and carrying a head standing along the flangeside ofsaid rail, a flange fixed to the plunger beneath the top of the housing, a spring between said flange and Web holding the plunger normally raised, a rock shaft passing beneath the rail and mounted in the-wall of said housing, its inner end having a cranked arm provided with a slot, means for connecting its outer end with a signal, and a pin in the plunger engaging said slot. I y c- In testimony whereof I my signature in presence of two witnesses.

, ens HEILIGENSTEIN. Witnesses a J. RHonEs,

J. .HEILIGENSTEIN.

.Gopiesot this patent-may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the (Commissioner of I'aten'ts,

Washington, I) G. 1 

